Why Does The Us Restrict Its Presidents To 2 Terms? A Look At The Tradition Trump Is Questioning

Only one person in U.S. history has defied the two-term example set by the first president, George Washington. And voters responded by forbidding future presidents from being elected more than twice.

President Donald Trump has alluded to arcane legal arguments in repeatedly suggesting he could seek a third term. Besides challenging long-settled readings of the U.S. Constitution, a Trump move to run in 2028 would challenge the precedent that voters have repeatedly upheld when given the opportunity.

Here is an explanation of the historical and legal tradition behind the presidency being a job for a maximum of two terms and two terms only.

Washington set the example of voluntary limits

It seemed a foregone conclusion that Washington, president of the 1787 convention that yielded the U.S. Constitution, also would become the nation's first federal executive, even as anti-federalists worried that he'd be reelected again and again, becoming a quasi-king by acclamation.